Follow the Leader
by Stormy1x2
Summary: Two are gone. One is dying. The last is left in the hands of the enemy. It's a brave new world. A Dark Turtles story. Fast Forward-verse. Now complete with a happyish ending. :D
1. Chapter 1

**Title: **Follow the Leader, 1/2

**Author:** Stormy1x2 (travelingstorm)

**Words:** 6480

**Notes:** LJ's fanfic100, prompt **48: **_diamond _

**Warnings:** Violence, angst,

**Summary: **Two are gone. One is dying. One is left in the hands of the enemy. A tale of the Dark Turtles. Takes place after 'DNA is Thicker than Water' and goes slightly into AU territory from there.

**Additional: **Well, I pleaded for a beta but no one apparently wants to tackle the Dark Turtles. I've re-read it about 4 times since finishing chapter one, but I_ never _catch everything. Feel free to point out any errors – I've no doubt there are a couple left.

* * *

It had taken massive upgrades of the battle drones and complete upload of a New York city schematic circa 2006 to make him happy, but Raphael was finally enjoying the holographic dojo Cody had designed for them to use. All around them, scattered across the moon-lit rooftop, were wave after wave of weapon-wielding foot Ninja. Raph crouched low to the ground, an eager smirk on his face. "Let's do it!"

"Attack!" shouted Leonardo, and the four brothers leaped into action. He dodged to the right, flipping over a Foot squad, and immediately entered into a one-on-one duel with a drone made to look like one of the Elite. His swords gleamed in the artificial moonlight as he drove his opponent back.

Mikey spun his 'chucks with deadly speed, cracking two Foot skulls at once and revealing the metal circuitry underneath. "This is more like it!"

Donatello flipped out of the way of a curved sword strike, and batted away his attacker. "Glad you approve, Mikey!"

Raph cackled as he leaped into the air, twisting and coming down sai's first. But just as his weapons were about to decapitate the battle drone, everything disappeared and the lights went on overhead. "Hey!" The dojo doors slid open, and Serling walked in. Deprived of his normal outlet for anger, Raphael snarled and stalked over to the robot, poking his finger into its chest. "What's the big idea buttin' in on our practice session?"

"My apologies for disturbing your little ninja games," Serling said disdainfully. "But Master Cody asked me to summon you right away. Police Constable Biggles is here, and he brought some... news, to share with you all."

"What is it?" Leonardo asked, coming up to stand next to Raphael. He slid his swords back into their scabbards. "Is anything wrong?"

Serling shook his head. "I'm sorry sir, but this is something you simply must see in order for you to believe."

Mikey looked at Donnie. "Well, I'm intrigued."

"So am I – at the fact that you used that word properly in a sentence," Donatello said, smiling at his sibling. "But joking aside, I think we'd better get out there and see what's going on."

"Agreed." Leonardo led the way out of the dojo at a run, his brothers right behind him.

"Naturally, no one waits for the robot," Serling sighed, and finished shutting down the system. "Such is the story of my life."

* * *

In the living room, Police Constable Biggles was seated primly on one of the long couches. A data pad was in his hand. Master Splinter had been summoned from his rooftop garden, and was seated on his meditation mat when the turtles arrived. Cody turned around to greet them.

"Hey guys," he said quietly. He looked pale, and a bit shocky. "Sorry for interrupting your practice."

"Not a problem, Cody," Leo told him, watching the littlest ninja with concern. "Are you okay? You don't look so good."

Cody bit his lip, and then shot a pleading glance at Constable Biggles. The robotic Peace Keeper immediately stood up, bowing his head once at the gathered group.

"Allow me to explain," he said calmly. "There was an incident at O'Neil Tech this morning, and as Darius Dunn is currently unavailable, it fell to young Cody Jones here to be the recipient of my report. It was a rather shocking occurrence, actually."

"What happened?" Raph asked in a growl. As a sign of silent support, he and Mikey had moved up to flank the young heir on either side. Cody seemed to relax fractionally at their appearance.

Constable Biggles held up his data pad. "It started this morning at oh'eight hundred hours. A disturbance was reported on a lower level of O'Neil Tech – a level that was not included in the buildings original blue prints. It only registers as a sort of storage area on the security system. Not one of the O'Neil Tech guards even knew it was there, as it did not even have a button marked for it on the transport systems."

"So how did it get reported?" Leonardo asked, wrinkling his brow in confusion.

"It was reported after the 'disturbance' broke through to the lower sub-basement levels,"said Biggles. "The levels that are patrolled and watched via the security system."

"Please go on," Master Splinter told him.

"An explosion was reported, and a security guard noted the large hole in the ground after the dust settled. As he called for back up, something – or should I say, some_one_ came out, followed by a second perpetrator. I believe you might recognize them." Pressing a button on the data pad, four holographic images suddenly hovered in the air above them, two of them highlighted. Gasps broke out from the group, and a low growl escaped from Raphael.

It was the Dark Turtles.

"It was all rather strange," Constable Biggles continued. "But two of them were attacking the other two. We know this because just over an hour ago, our criminal science investigation team finished their preliminary inspection and retrieved a security tape from the closed circuit monitoring system. The four creatures were essentially watched twenty-four hours by these cameras, which were encrypted so securely no one in the building ever suspected they existed. The feed was traced to only one other location in the entire O'Neil Tech building – the former office of Mr Darius Dunn."

"Darius again," Raph muttered. "Why am I not surprised?"

"So the Dark Turtles lived under O'Neil Tech," Donatello said quietly. "Wow, think of the irony."

"I don't get it," Mikey said with a shrug.

"Consider this," Donatello urged him. "We live here in a time where we can finally walk around outside like everyone else, and our dopplegangers, a product of this time, are trapped, living underground, essentially in the sewers." He shook his head. "Kinda sad, when you think about."

"So what happened?" Leonardo asked the Peace Keeper.

"I'll show you the video I showed Mr Jones," Biggles said, and pressed another series of buttons on the data pad. A large holographically-projected screen spread out before them, and suddenly a large dark room was shown. The only lights were from the various monitors set up around the area. The clip started.

A large shape burst though the walls. It was Dark Leonardo, and he looked badly wounded. His body was covered with deep scratches and entire gouges of flesh slashed away. Blood flowed freely down his ripped and torn body. Still, he wasn't wholly beaten; he struggled to get his arms underneath himself, straining to get to his feet.

A second figure appeared in the swirling dust, and as it drew nearer, they could see it was Dark Raphael. The large red reptile was grinning evilly, and as he stomped through the hole Dark Leo's flying body had made, he reared back and kicked his former leader hard. Dark Leo sailed across the room, landing into a bank of computers with an audible crunch. He slid off them slowly, leaving a trail of blood behind.

"I thought you'd put up more of a fight than that!" roared Dark Raph. Dark Leo coughed up dark globs of blood, and tried to turn over. "You've become such a wimp, I can't even look atcha!"

"He_ has_ become rather frail," came another voice. Dark Donatello stepped lightly through the whole, watching the display with obvious amusement. "He's gone soft. All this talk of working together, being so weak as to share the food when we all know that only the strongest survive." He shook his head, lashing his tail slowly from side to side, like a viper waiting to strike. "You disappoint me, oh fearless leader."

Dark Raph laughed and clomped across the room. Reaching down, he grabbed Dark Leo by the throat and lifted him bodily into the air. "Pathetic!" he snarled, and spat in his brother's face before slamming one ham-sized fist into Dark Leo's head, rocketing him back to the ground.

Suddenly there was an blur of movement, and Dark Mike was there, pulling at Dark Raph's arms. "Stop this!" he hissed. "We're supposed to fight the _others_, not each other!"

"You're just as bad as he is," Dark Donatello said, rolling his eyes. "You've always been the weakest and stupidest one of us all. It's no wonder really, that you've fallen for our Mighty Leader's idiocy. You would have been dead long ago had he not taken pity on you and forced us to do the same."

Dark Raph threw Dark Mike across the room. The yellow-skinned mutant crashed into the wall with the sound of breaking bones. A weak whimper drifted up from his semi-conscious form. Dark Donatello stood over him, tisking, before delivering a vicious kick that sent the smaller form rolling along the floor headfirst into a support beam. Vibrations traveled up the pole, and cracked the ceiling; chunks of the roof fell to the floor, pounding the smaller mutant's body. Dark Donatello laughed, a cold cruel sound. "How _have_ you managed to live this long?"

Dark Raph was still laughing. "We should'a done this months ago." He reached out and roughly nudged Dark Leo with one clawed foot. The blue-tinted mutant didn't move, didn't flinch. He looked like he was barely breathing. "He's done for." Stepping away, he rejoined his violet-skinned sibling.

"And the pleasure of disposing of this worthless brat is mine," spat Dark Donatello. "After months of putting up with his mind-numbing drivel and imbecilic behaviour, I am certainly going to enjoy this." He stepped back and whirled around, obviously intending to rip his sharp-edged tail across the other's vulnerable neck.

Dark Mike had managed to regain consciousness, and at the sight of his brother's familiar stance, he seemed to lose all hope. He closed his eyes, head bowing. Waiting.

Dark Donatello snarled and spun around. His tail flew in a wide arc, the razored tip homing in on his target. But then there was a blue flash of movement, and he struck not Dark Mikey – but Dark Leo, who had somehow managed to get to his feet for one last desperate lunge, placing himself in front of the smaller form of Dark Mike. Flesh cleaved, blood splashed in a high arc along the wall, droplets spraying across Dark Mike's face.

"What..." Dark Mike looked to be in shock, his eyes wide open, a horrified expression on his face."What d-did... _why_?"

"B-brother," gasped Dark Leo, and he slowly collapsed to the floor. His eyes slid shut.

Dark Raph took a step forward to finish off the youngest of their former group, but Dark Donatello suddenly gripped his arm. "We need to go," he hissed. Pointing at the ceiling, they could hear someone shouting. "We've alerted the security guards to our existence down here. No doubt they'll be summoning the Peace Keepers!"

"So let's go," Dark Raph snarled, and leaped for the hole in the ceiling. Dark Donatello followed, digging at the rubble with his talons to pull himself up, and the clip ended with a burst of static followed by a broadcast signal.

* * *

"That's when a large slab of the ceiling fell onto the camera," Constable Biggles said somewhat ruefully. "All of the other video we have is from the normal monitors. The two of them were apprehended by my crack Peace Keeping staff utilizing tranquilizers and restraining collars minutes after exiting the lower levels."

The group was silent, still in shock by what they'd seen. Donatello swallowed hard, and put a comforting hand on Cody's shoulder. "That explains the look on your face from earlier," he said quietly. "Cody, you should have waited for us."

"I didn't know it was going to be something like that," Cody protested faintly. "If I'd known, I _would_ have! Honest!"

Leonardo glared at Biggles. "What's the big idea of showing that to a minor?" he snapped hotly.

Constable Biggles shrugged. "As I told you, without any other guardian, Cody Jones is currently the head of O'Neil Tech and is rightfully the one to view my report. Particularly since he now needs to make a decision."

"Decision?" Raph scowled. "What decision?"

"What to do regarding the offenders." Constable Biggles adjusted his hat. "You see, the purple and the red-skinned mutants were arrested. They attacked the Peace Keepers in an attempt to escape, and we've just witnessed on video their murderous actions. They are currently being held and are slated for a psyche-diving session in the next few days. What the psyche-divers discover will determine how they are to be handled – imprisonment, or permanent stasis - but as they are considered a threat to society, they have been confiscated from O'Neil Tech."

"Confiscated?" Donatello was confused. "That's an odd term to use for a living person."

"Bio-generated organism, actually," Biggles corrected him. "They were registered as a creation of O'Neil Tech. We tracked their serial numbers online and confiscated them as deadly property."

"Property?" Donatello's eyes narrowed. "Registered?"

"Indeed." Constable Biggles continued, seemingly unaware of the anger he was generating in the other mutants in the room. "Now, the decision of what to do with those two are out of Mr Jone's hands. But the remaining two are a different case." Two more windows popped up – streaming live-feeds from a camera operating in two different rooms that looked sort of like hospitals. The first one was Dark Mike. "This one was badly hurt, but is expected to eventually make a full recovery with time." The second window was highlighted. Dark Leo was floating in a regenerative chamber. "His wounds were so extensive and severe, that he actually temporarily expired on the way to the hospital. He was revived, but it took nearly four minutes to do so. The doctors are concerned that between the injuries he sustained, and his lack of oxygen, that he may not completely recover. At this point, it's a complete toss-up whether or not he'll last the night."

The room was still quiet. Leonardo's fists were clenched. Raph looked like he wanted to be angry, but couldn't quite manage it completely. Mikey stared wide-eyed at Dark Mike, one hand partially raised, as though reaching out to the other through the vid feed.

"What's the decision Cody needs to make?" Donatello asked in a rough voice, gripping his bo tightly.

"What to do with them," Biggles responded promptly. "They are also registered as creations of O'Neil Tech. If you want them returned, they will need extensive, specialized – and _expensive _– healing, and that's even if the blue one survives. If not, they will be taken off life-support and will likely perish. Our agency does not have funds set aside to pay for the care of other company's creations. If you decide to relinquish ownership, as they seem less violent, they will be sent to prison. If they survive, following a successful psyche-diving check, they will likely be sorted into the system for manual labor or some other such program."

"Stop referring to them as property!" Donatello snarled. "They're living creatures, no matter what else they've done. You can't just take them off life support – you'll kill them!"

"We do not have the funds or technology to take proper care of them, and frankly, no government agency would foot the bill for a criminally-inclined lab specimen unless they could use it for a weapon." Biggles held up his radio. "I _could_ ask my superiors to submit a proposal turning over the creatures to the government if you sign away all rights to them--"

"_NO_." Leonardo cut him off. "We've dealt with government agencies and how they treat creatures like us and the Dark Turtles. Your leader, Bishop? Ask him one day all about his own experiments on mutants." He turned to Cody. "Cody, I know it's up to you, but my opinion is that we bring them here."

"Your shell must be cracked," Raph stated flatly. "We did this before, remember? And your evil twin let his buddies in to try and kill us all, even_ after_ we tried the 'nice' approach. It was a bad idea then, and it's a bad idea now."

"But this is different!" Leonardo protested. "Look at them! In government hands they'll die, and if by some miracle they don't, they'll be made into weapons, or experimented on. I won't stand by and submit anyone to that kind of treatment ever again!"

"And he tried to save me—well, the dark me," Mikey added, speaking for the first time since the video ended. "Didn't you hear what was going on? Leo got through to him! That stuff about sharing, and looking out for each other – he was trying to get them to listen. That's why Dark Raph called him weak!" Mikey folded his arms and stood next to Leonardo. "I'm with Leo. They need help. No matter what, they don't deserve the government's kind of help."

"I say, I'm really starting to get offended about the lack of trust you have in our beloved President," Constable Biggles said with a frown.

"We know a side of him that you don't," Donatello said darkly. "And I'm with Leo and Mikey. This talk of 'ownership' and 'registration' is repulsive. They are living, sentient creatures."

"Yeah, that tried to kill us." Raph looked at them pleadingly. "Can't we just send a check or something to cover their medical bills and then dump 'em in jail?"

Three united turtles looked back at him, calmly. Raph turned to Master Splinter. "Master, you can't feel the same way!"

"But I can," Master Splinter said calmly. "Raphael, from the video, it is plain to see that some of the seeds we attempted to sow have indeed taken root in Dark Leonardo. Perhaps with more time and healing, he can redeem himself in the eyes of society."

"And Dark Mikey might be receptive too," Leonardo continued. "He tried to protect my 'twin' from harm. A selfless act from a member of a group known for their selfish and cruel deeds."

"They can't be trusted," Raph growled, a tad desperately.

"It's my decision," Cody spoke up suddenly. He turned to Raphael. "Raph, I'm sorry, but I agree with them." He looked back at Constable Biggles. "I'll take full responsibility for them. Can you arrange for their transfer?"

"Certainly," Constable Biggles said. "I must say, the paper work for a return of property is much easier than the forms I'd need to fill to confiscate them, process and deal with them in our system. This makes many lives much easier."

"Except ours," Raphael bit out. "And when those two snap and turn on us, I'll be right there to say 'I told you so.'" Spinning on his heel, he stalked out of the room.

Mikey looked like he wanted to follow, but Splinter held out his arm. "Let him go, Michaelangelo. Give him time to calm himself, and perhaps he will see things more clearly. He only speaks in anger because he fears for the lives of the ones he loves."

Mikey nodded. He sent one last, worried look in his older brother's direction, before returning his attention to the group. "So now what?"

"I'll arrange the transfer of the yellow one tonight," said Biggles briskly. "His wounds, while painful, are somewhat stabilized, and he can be brought here easily. The other one will require special transferring if you want him returned alive."

"As soon as possible," Donatello said firmly. His opinion of the officer was sinking steadily. "And if you're done for now..." he looked pointedly at the door.

"I'm just doing my duty," Biggles said stiffly. "There's no need for attitude. Mr Jones, I shall contact you with the transfer details later. Good day to you all." Tipping his police hat, he nodded at Cody, turned and left.

Donatello watched the officer leave with clenched fists. Leo nudged him gently. "Don? That wasn't like you at all."

"He made me so mad," Donatello said angrily. "The way he talks of our clones, as though they're nothing more than lab specimens. That could have been us back in our time! Experimented on, branded with serial numbers. I won't stand for it!"

"And you won't have to," Leo said soothingly. "They're coming here, and we'll do what we can to help them. You have my word."

"And mine," Mikey put in.

"Me too," said Cody. "They can't be all bad, if they tried to save each other."

Serling looked from face to face, his optics drooping as he came to a realization. "We're going to have two more reptiles joining us?" He raised his arm, pressing one digit to his temple circuit. "Why do I suddenly feel the urge for a therapeutic system reboot? Ignorance _is_ bliss, they say..."

* * *

The first thing he was aware of was warmth. And softness. Warmth and softness. It felt good. Weird, but good. Nice, even. Wrapped in warm, soft things.

_Wait a minute..._

There was no such thing as warmth or softness in the dungeons. He struggled to move, shouting silent orders to his body to do as he said. Eyes refused to open, body refused to move. Was his mouth open or closed? His ears were working. That would do. He strained, listening as hard as he could. Sounds. Beeps. Whooshes. More beeps. More whooshes. A rattle of some kind. A drip. Another drip. Was it raining? If he could just open his eyes, he could look.

_Open, open, open, open,_ he chanted inside his head, focusing on making his eyes respond. _Bad eyes, bad bad eyes. Open, open!_

He was rewarded with a slight cracking of his eyelids. Light filtered in, harsh and bright, sending pain spiking through his head. _Close! Close! Abort!_

"I think he's waking up," said a voice. A familiar voice. Yes, yes, he knew that voice. Sort of. It was softer. Gentler. It was wrong. Right but wrong. Something moved nearby – he could sense it. He flinched. "Can you hear me? Can you open your eyes?"

Hear, yes. See, no. Light was bad. The only light he could see/sense was the filtered rays through his eyelids, glowing red. Then the glow dimmed. The light? It was gone? He tried to open his eyes again. A sliver. Light crept in again, but it was muted. Tolerable. He forced them open a bit more. Everything was blurry. The green thing standing over him was blurry. Green and purple. _Wait – purple thing?_

Memories slammed into him, and suddenly he was wide awake, a terrified whimper escaping him. He squeezed his eyes shut, feeling wetness, water, pressing out against his will. Weak... he was _weak_. He was showing weakness again, and he'd hurt him _again_. There was a high-pitched whine in the air, and he realized dimly it was coming from himself. _Get away, must get away, yes yes yesyesyesyes._

"Calm down!" Same voice. Sharp voice. _Don't hurt me_, he pleaded. He'd raise his hands if he could, but they were stuck. Trapped. He was trapped. Trapped with warm, fuzzy things and a right but wrong voice. He was so very, very confused. Maybe he _was _as stupid as everyone said he was. "No one's going to hurt you. Calm down and open your eyes."

No hurting? No pain? What madness was this? He opened his eyes again, blinking furiously against the muted light. The blurry green thing was coming into focus, slowly. Purple. But mostly green. It was... it was...

"You..." he rasped hoarsely, quietly. His throat hurt. His head hurt. His _everything_ hurt. "Not him..."

"I'm not Dark Donatello, no," said the purple and green thing. "Just regular Donatello. You've been badly hurt. How do you feel?"

"Hurts," he said, and didn't care that it came out as a whine. "Hurts, hurts, hurts..." his voice gave out, and he whined again, a high-pitched noise that sounded like a dying animal. Which he supposed he was. Funny.

"I'll increase the painkillers you've been given." The green and purple blue – _Donatello_, his mind reminded him – moved over to the thing by the bed. There was a bag with not-water in it and it was attached to a needle which was – in his arm?!

"Out!" he whimpered. "Out, out, take it out!" Donatello looked at him. There was pity in those eyes. He didn't care. Didn't care about pity, didn't care about being weak. Needles were bad. Needles meant experiments. Needles meant even more pain. "No 'speriments, no, no, please, no."

"No one's experimenting on you," Donatello said patiently.

They say that now. They always change their minds later. Donatello raised his arm, and he flinched, shutting his eyes again. _No, no_, he chanted again, and then froze as the hand came down on his shoulder. What? What was this? A touch. A touch with no pain. _What is he doing?_

"Calm down," Donatello repeated, and he moved his hand again. Patting. _He's patting my shoulder._ Why? He's the enemy. Those hands should inflict pain.

But the pain was going away. Numbness. Coolness. Bliss. Spreading down and around and all through his body. The urge to give in, to sink, was strong. In the back of his mind he knew it was wrong, but he didn't care. It felt good. He relaxed into the warmth. He opened his eyes again and took another look around.

The softness, the warmth. It was a blue blanket. A big, thick, fuzzy one, with stars and planets outlined in gold thread. It smelled like flowers. He raised his eyes, ignoring the look Donatello was giving him, and studied the room. A big room. Big windows at the end. Lots of machines, full of beeps and whistles and flashing lights. He flinched again and looked away, his gaze coming to rest on a small table by the bed. On the table was a tree. A small tree. He knew that tree. He'd been told about it, hadn't he? By someone. By--

He gasped. "Leader!" He tried to sit up but pain exploded in his midsection and he nearly passed out, collapsing back to the bed with harsh, pained breaths.

"Calm down!" Donatello said again. "He's alive. He's hurt, but he's alive. For now."

For now. He was alive. Alive for now. "Where?" he half-gasped, half-moaned. "Where...?"

"He's in another room. He requires more care than you do, at the moment." Donatello was studying him like a bug under glass, and he couldn't help but squirm. His 'twin' liked doing that – studying the bugs in the dungeons. Seeing how long they could live without food or water, frying them with light through glass, crushing them slowly under his talons, plucking wings and antennae with smirks and giggles. "He's... in bad shape."

"Wanna see..." he groaned. The thought occurred to him that he should find it strange and wrong that apparently he was getting medical care from a hated enemy, but he hurt, and he was scared, and he was weak, just like his other brothers said. But Leader... Leader had saved him. Leader had shared food with him when the others would beat him and take his share from him. Leader kept the Crazy One from killing him. He wanted his Leader. "Leader...?"

"You can see him later," Donatello said gently. "You need to rest."

Darkness was coming. It was there, at the edge of his vision, and coming quickly, filling in the corners with shadows, blurring everything. "Leader..."

He tried. But he was weak. And so he slept.

* * *

Donatello watched as Dark Mike sank back into unconsciousness. He had to resist the urge to touch the mutants hand, to offer some form of comfort. When he'd come to check on him, he'd tried to anticipate different kinds of reactions from the mutant – anger, rage, hostility. But this.. this was just sad.

The fear... the pain. The panic. Dark Mike had been_ crying,_ trying to get away from him, flinching at what was supposed to be a comforting touch. "Then again, that's something he's probably never experienced before in his life," Don murmured. The whines and whimpers reminded him of the time Klunk had hurt his paw. Mikey's kitten had made the same noises when Donnie wrapped the tender little foot with bandages. It had been the closest Donnie had ever come to crying over his brother's pet.

Dark Mike in battle was a fierce warrior with an equally fierce grin on his face, fighting with an exuberance Donnie easily recognized in his own sibling. But this wasn't a battle ground, and the warrior was no where to be found. This was a broken soul, a damaged child, and he was suddenly fiercely glad he'd argued for them to stay there.

The door slid open, and Leo stepped in. "How's he doing?"

"He woke up. In pain, and terrified. He wants to see his leader." Donatello looked at his brother sadly. "I just feel so sorry for him. For them."

"It could be a trap," Leo reminded him gently.

Donnie gave him a mild glare. "There's no way he could have faked the response I just saw," he said firmly. "I know he's dangerous, but I want to help both of them. I blame Darius for this – Darius made them who they are today." After transferring Dark Mike, Constable Biggles had shown them additional information they'd discovered about the underground lair. When Donatello had realized the reason for the large robot, the lab tables, and the dissection tools in one of the other rooms, he'd nearly exploded with impotent rage. "If I could get my hands on him--"

"Easy Donnie, you're channeling Raph." Leo rubbed the top of his brother's shell soothingly. "I'm on your side, remember? I just want to be cautious, for now."

"I know," Donatello said with a sigh. "It just makes me so angry."

Leonardo moved forward, looking down on the yellow-skinned mutant. "He looks younger when he's asleep," he observed. "Like our Mikey."

"But they're very different." Donatello shuddered. "Or are they? Maybe our clones are how we'd act, if we'd been raised by someone like Bishop, instead of Master Splinter. They've got those rough exteriors, but maybe, deep down inside, there's something worth saving."

"A diamond in the rough?" Leonardo gave him a tired smile. "Don't you think that's being overly optimistic?"

"Possibly. But I'm just saying, maybe our clones aren't that different from us after all." Donatello frowned as he thought that over. "Though if that's true, what does that say about me and mine?"

"Your clone is a vicious, sadistic, arrogant animal," said Leonardo flatly. "Actually, it sounds like he's your complete opposite."

Donatello gave him a weak smile, but didn't look entirely convinced.

* * *

It had been six days since they'd arrived. Raphael had yet to set foot in the rooms housing 'the enemy' and had been putting in a record number of hours in the holo-dojo. Leonardo wasn't sure what to say to him, other than to reassure his sibling that they were aware that it could be a trap, that they weren't taking it lightly. But Raph didn't want to hear it, and so Leo let it go for the time being. He had other things to worry about.

He opened the door and moved inside slowly. In the three days he'd been awake, Dark Mike had flinched away from any and all sudden movements. They were separated by a forcefield, as they had the first time they'd had Dark Leo in their home, but it seemed to make the other mutant more at ease if everything was nice and slow and telegraphed. "How are you doing?"

"I wanna see Leader," said Dark Mike. He was curled up on the floor in a ball, arms wrapped around his legs and his tail around his feet. There was no trace of the manic energy they'd come to expect from him during their previous encounters. Even his long tongue was tucked away securely inside his mouth.

"I know," Leo said quietly. "I'm here to take you to him now."

Dark Mike's head shot up, his orange eyes zeroing on Leonardo as though checking for lies. "You'll let me out?" He gave him a strange look. "Are you nuts?"

Leo shook his head, unable to completely stifle his grin at the candid admission. "No. But your legs have healed enough that you can walk, and so I'm changing the static field to a kinetic one. It will read your body's energy flow and move with you." As he spoke, he pressed the buttons on the remote. The wall of energy swirled, and reformed itself in a cylindrical form around Dark Mike. "This is what we did for your brother, when he was with us before."

"Before..." Dark Mike stood up slowly. Leo watched, wincing in sympathy at the pained movements. His legs were nearly healed, but his right arm had been completely crushed, and his ribs shattered. Despite advanced healing tanks and auto-docs, Donatello had calculated that it would still take another week or two for him to be at one hundred percent. "You guys were the ones that made him think those strange things."

"Strange things?"

"Caring. Sharing." Dark Mike tilted his head to the side. "That first night when he came back, Darius gave him a piece of meat. He shredded it into pieces, and gave us all some. That doesn't happen in the dungeons." He scowled. "You made him weak! You made_ me_ weak!"

Leonado blinked. "How did I make you weak?"

Dark Mike hissed at him, throwing a punch with his good arm into the force field. He stayed there, knuckles pressed against the energized barrier, eyes squeezed shut. "You made him _different,_" he insisted tiredly. "You made him start to _care._ And that made the other two angry."

"But not you," Leonardo surmised, watching the clone of his brother shake, obviously still exhausted by the extensive healing he'd been through.

"Well, I'm the stupid one," Dark Mike muttered crossly. "Go figure."

"Wanting someone to care about you does not make you stupid _or _weak."

"Oh, what do you know?" Dark Mike glared at him. "You have siblings who don't try to kill you on a daily basis. Who share food instead of taking it from you. Your Donatello doesn't play 'sample extraction' with the laser scalpels on you, does he?"

Leonardo wasn't sure he wanted to know. "Your leader tried to make things better."

"And he nearly got killed for it." Dark Mike straightened, his fists clenched. "I wanna see him. Now!"

"Fine." Leonardo turned, and gestured for Dark Mike to follow him down the hallway. Two doors down, he stopped, knocked on the door, and then unlocked it with the remote. Then he stepped back, and let Dark Mike go through. He didn't follow, but he didn't close the door either, not with Donnie in there doing a check on the machines, forcefield or no forcefield. Instead, he leaned against the door, folding his arms and watched silently.

* * *

"Leader?" Dark Mike stepped slowly into the room. The purple-green one was in the corner but he was reading a data pad and checking readouts on the monitors. No longer as confused as his first day, he could see the huge differences between his Donatello and this one, and so it was much easier now to just ignore him.

He moved closer. His leader, the one who had tried to save his life, was floating in a large cylindrical container. An oxygen mask was strapped to his face, and small, metallic auto-docs clung to his skin, sending repairing nanobots into his body. Bubbles floated in the jelly-like serum, popping gently. He moved as close as the forcefield would allow, placing a clawed hand on the barrier. "Leader..."

He swallowed hard. Something was wrong with him. He was scared. That in itself wasn't unusual, but he wasn't scared for himself. He was... he was... scared for _him_? For his Leader? "Don't die," he hissed, rage welling up in him so suddenly it took him by surprise. "I didn't ask you to save me! I didn't ask you to share the meat! It's not my fault!"

His leader didn't answer. Only floated. Was he listening? Could he hear?

"Are you even alive?" he wondered out loud. "You look dead. You can't be dead. You're Leader."

"He's not dead."

Dark Mike whirled around, hissing automatically at the approacher. Donatello held up his hands as a sign of peace. "I didn't mean to scare you."

"I'm not scared!" Dark Mike snapped sulkily. "You startled me."

"I didn't mean to startle you either." Donatello smiled, and nodded at the cylinder. "I just wanted to reassure you that he's not dead." The smile disappeared. "I won't lie to you. He's still very badly hurt. He's in a state of suspended animation – a coma. He might not wake up for days yet. Maybe weeks. Or even months."

"Yeah, yeah, or longer," Dark Mike said sullenly. "I know what a coma is. I may be the stupid one, but I know that much."

"I never said you were stupid," Donatello told him calmly. "In fact, I _know_ you're not. You're cloned from my brother, and none of my brothers are stupid."

Dark Mike stuck out his tongue, and turned back to his leader, ignoring the other. He pounded his fist lightly on the forcefield, listening to the strange, electric-sounding hiss it made. It made his skin crawl. His eyes were hot and itchy for some reason. It had to be Leader's fault. "I want you to wake up," he growled softly, after a few minutes. "If you die, I'll be all alone. You said we were brothers, that we didn't have to hurt each other. I believed you." He scratched lightly at the barrier. "I believed you even when the others tried to kill you. That's why I tried to stop them. If you die, I think it'll hurt me. I don't know. But you promised." He glared at the still form. "Don't you die!

Bubbles popped. The auto-docs hummed.

"You stupid, jerky, son of a Klaxon."

His Leader's eyes stayed closed.

"I_ hate_ you."

Dark Mike's eyes closed, and he slid down the barrier to his knees, scratching his talons all the way down. His tail automatically curled around his legs, and he clutched it like a lifeline. "Don't die."

* * *

Mikey watched silently as his doppleganger rocked back and forth inside the containment field. He turned to Raphael, who had been watching the monitors with him, raising an eye ridge. "Still think he's playing us, bro?"

Raph watched Dark Mike with a blank evenness. He didn't answer.

* * *

**End Part 1.**

I'd really like to know what people think - the Dark Turtles were harder to characterize then I thought they'd be. C&C greatly appreciated. :D

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	2. Chapter 2

**Title: **Follow the Leader, 2/2

**Author: **Stormy1x2 (travelingstorm)

**Warnings:** Spoilers for the FF series

**Words:** 7602

**Notes:** Done for LJ's fanfic100 community, prompt #**16**:_ purple_

_

* * *

_**Follow the Leader Chapter 2**

--

"I hate oatmeal." Dark Mike folded his arms, glaring at the offensive tray that had been brought to him. The oatmeal 'blurped' at him.

"Have you ever tried it?" Mikey asked cheerfully. "'Cause you know, you can't say you don't like something unless you try it first."

"I don't need to try it to know I don't like it." Dark Mike smacked the bowl away, knocking the contents all over the floor. "It looks like the mush we pretty much lived on, except when Darius felt like being generous and gave us meat."

"Meat like hamburgers and lightly seared steak?" Mikey looked at the destroyed remnants of breakfast. "'Cause yeah, I can see how that would be more appetizing than oatmeal."

"No. Meat. Raw meat, nice and fresh. Still dripping." Dark Mike licked his lips at the memory, giving Mikey a fiendish look. "Tasty, best when warm."

"Now that's just sick," Mikey said with a frown. "Darius, what – fed you like animals in the zoo? Tossing meat scraps?"

Dark Mike shrugged, uncaring. "It tasted better than the mush. Better then _that_." He nodded at the oatmeal.

There was no way he was serving his clone raw, meat. He had limits. "How about bacon instead?" Mikey suggested. "_Cooked_ bacon. We don't serve bloody meat scraps to our guests, but I can definitely do bacon." Dark Mike gave him an odd look. Mikey frowned. "What's up?"

"You refer to me as a guest?" Dark Mike raised an eye ridge, reaching out to knock on the energized barrier. "I'd love to see how you treat an enemy."

Mikey rolled his eyes, and left the room. Raphael was in the hallway. "S'up, Raphie?"

"Getting chummy with your clone now?" Raph studied the door Mikey had just exited. His voice wasn't angry. Just even.

"Well, to be honest, I'm with him on the anti-oatmeal bandwagon." Mikey shrugged. "And since I'm not about to go hunt down a deer to toss in there, I figure some bacon and maybe a nice omelette might raise the cheeriness level around here."

"Whatever." Raph turned and walked away.

Mikey watched him leave and sighed, before heading to the kitchen to keep his promise.

**--**

Donatello checked the readouts again. The auto-docs were doing a wonderful job at healing Dark Leo's body, but his brain was another matter entirely. The private doctors Cody had hired to come in and perform periodic checks on their 'guests' had said that there was nothing more they could do but wait and see if he woke up, and go from there. Another day or two, and Dark Leo could be removed from the tank, and put in a bed to finish healing. It had taken nearly two weeks for the auto-docs to repair the deep-tissue damage he'd sustained all over his body. His organs had nearly been pulped; the auto-docs had to salvage the remaining living tissue and practically regrow everything.

Mast Splinter and Cody came in. "Hey Donnie."

Donatello gave them a brief smile, before returning to his data pads. "Hey guys."

"How's he doing?" Cody asked. The youth went straight to the tank and placed his hand on the outside.

Donatello sighed. "As well as can be expected. All we can do is wait for him to wake up."

"Serling brought news of the other two clones," Master Splinter told him.

"What happened?"

Cody looked tired. "They've been put into permanent stasis," he said quietly. "Apparently the psyche divers found they were too dangerous and too unpredictable to ever be rehabilitated. There was absolutely no remorse, no second thoughts. Only blood lust and the wish to kill everyone they saw passing in front of their cage. One of the psyche divers refused to work with them after only one session."

Donnie sighed. "I guess it was too much to hope for to redeem them all," he said glumly. His head drooped slightly.

It did not go unnoticed. Splinter looked him, concerned. "What troubles you, my son?"

"Them," Donnie said, pointing at Dark Leo. "I mean, Dark Leo showed bits of Leo's character when he protected Dark Mike. Leo got through to him about caring for each other. Proof that part of Leo exists inside his clone. And Mikey..." Donie smiled briefly. "I can see bits of our Mikey in Dark Mike. His snarkiness, his quips to hide his emotions, the child-like reactions he has to certain things."

"You wonder why your clone showed such cruelty," Splinter said, suddenly understanding.

Donnie nodded. "Even Raph's clone showed characteristics of him – that grouchy, angry disposition, his temper, and the quick way he lost it when being teased or insulted." Donatello rubbed his temples, trying to stave off the headache he could feel starting to form. "What does it say about me, when my clone is a complete and utter psychopath?"

"You are reading too much into the surface of what we see," Splinter told him, reaching out to his son. Donatello clasped his Master's hand, squeezing it tightly. "You see just what your clone wishes you to see."

"And what do you see?" Donatello asked tiredly.

Splinter smiled. "While your clone shows cruelty in experimentation, I see your curious mind wanting to know the hows and whys of everything in the world. Your clone merely ignores the part of you that is honorable and gentle."

"Master..."

"He is clever, as you are brilliant, poking at people's flaws while you merely view them with your insightful observations." Splinter drew his son closer and hugged him gently. "My son, you do indeed share traits with your clone, but how you choose to express them is vastly different. You have an inherently good nature, my son. Do not fear yourself. You are not a monster."

Donatello drew in a shaky breath, feeling relief wash over him in waves. "Thank you, Sensei. _Father._" He bowed deeply. Then he straightened, smiling much more sincerely this time. "I should get back to work. Dark Leo will be ready to come out of the tank by tomorrow night, I think. I need to start getting things ready."

"I'll help," Cody volunteered.

"Thanks, Cody," Donnie said gratefully. "I can use all the help I can get."

--

Dark Mike was starting to be of the opinion that he was not the craziest terrapin-based life form in the galaxy anymore.

This opinion had been cemented when his 'original' walked in to his hospital room the first time after he'd woken up in the hands of his enemies. He'd been there for three days, and had been going stir crazy in his room once he didn't feel the urge to sleep all the time. The door had slid open and Mikey had walked in, carrying a large metal and plastic box that Dark Mike had somehow recognized as a gaming system. Instead of hostility and a 'chuck to the face, he'd been given a chocolate bar, a warning not to tell Donnie he'd given him something not on an approved hospital diet, and a remote control. The barrier was still between them – only one remote controlled it and Mikey was forbidden to touch it except in emergency cases – but the field had been recalibrated to keep from interfering with the hospital equipment, and so it didn't faze the gaming system. They had then proceeded to play a three hour marathon of Helix 2. Of all the reactions he had been envisioning regarding his 'original', playtime had not been one of them.

Adding in the gentle tones of which Donnie had a habit of speaking to him in, and the smiles Leo freely gave, and Dark Mike didn't know what to think. Part of him wanted to smile back at Leo, or thank Donnie for helping him. But the other, louder parts of him were telling him to keep his mouth shut and look for a way to escape.

Even though he didn't really want to. Why should he? He got three hot meals a day, on plates no less. No fighting for scraps – he could have seconds, even thirds if he wanted them. No sleeping on floors here with only a stolen coat from a dumpster for a pillow – he had a nice, soft bed, with thick blankets and fluffy pillows. He didn't have to clean off blood and grime in the cold river water that flowed near their lair. Since being given access to a shower with vibrating jets and unlimited hot water, he'd been shocked to discover a hidden fondness for being clean.

No, he didn't want to leave. But he also didn't know if this was the right thing to do. Part of his nature was to work for acceptance. Only if the others tolerated him, would he eat, or be spared during practice. By accepting his enemies help, by wanting to change in such drastic ways, was he not betraying his old life? He didn't care about Dark Raph and Dark Donatello's opinions, considering they were going to be in stasis fields for the rest of their lives, but was it really okay for him to do this?

He really wished Dark Leo would wake up. Leader would have a plan. He was smart. He always knew what to do. If Leader said he could stay and make this a home, then he would do it. But on the off-chance that Leader wanted to leave, or attack... he had to stay distanced. He _had_ to.

The door slid open again, and Donatello poked his head inside. "C'mon down," he said cheerfully. "It's movie night! We've got thrills, chills – and no doubt, plenty of spills once Mikey gets his hands on the snacks."

Dark Mike looked at him warily, but eventually got to his feet. "Movie night?"

Donatello stepped back to allow the forcefield by. "Yep. A collection of old horror and sci-fi flicks from the 20th century. We managed to get Cody hooked on them, and so we've started up a weekly tradition. We've got 'The Wolfman', 'The Blob that Ate Chicago', and 'Godzilla versus Mothra.'"

Dark Mike considered this for a minute as they made their way down the hall.. As they went into the living room, he shook his head in disbelief. "How on this planet did we manage to keep losing to you guys?"

"Raph asked the same thing when he saw the night's lineup," Donnie said, chuckling.

In the living room, Mikey sat on one end of the long couch. Cody sat next to him, and Leonardo took up the other end. Master Splinter had one armchair to himself, and Raphael was draped over another, glaring at them as they walked in.

"Ignore him," Donnie said quietly. "He's under orders from Master Splinter to behave."

Dark Mikey didn't know how reassured he was supposed to be by that statement. Regardless, he sat down on the floor as far away from Raph as he could get while still being within viewing distance of the TV. Donatello nudged Leo and Cody apart and joined the party on the sofa.

"Let the movies begin," Cody intoned solemnly as he pressed the remote button.

--

It had been nearly a month since Dark Mikey had woken up in not-Dark Donnie's lab. Life had slowly settled into a series of routines that he, despite his insistent urge to deny, had to come like and expect. Breakfast, now with the others in the big dining hall. Rehabilitation workouts in the dojo. Visit his Leader. Lunch. Video games with his 'original'. More workouts in the dojo. A visit to the rooftop to watch the rat play with rocks and plants. Another visit to Leader. Dinner. TV time with everyone. A last visit to Leader. Pick through some of the comic books and hand held games that 'original' had stuck in his room. Sleep, and begin the whole process anew the following morning.

Despite his vow to remain distanced until he heard otherwise from his Leader, he felt himself slipping. He had thanked Mikey for letting him play the new game Starlie had dropped off before dragging Cody on a lunch date. He'd sparred with Leonardo during one of his rehab sessions, and he'd had _fun _doing it. There was a twinge in his stomach, and he rubbed it uneasily. Was he changing? Was he starting to be someone else? Would his Leader hate him for it? Would he hurt him for changing? But Leader himself had started the changes. It was his fault.

Still, he was Leader. He was allowed to change and do what he wanted. He...he was not Leader. His job, his place, was behind Leader. To do as he said, to carry out orders. He was not permitted to change on his own – that was reserved for those higher than him, and as his crazy sibling used to tell him all the time, he was the lowest of them all.

"Wake up," he said listlessly, as he did every time he came to see his leader. He poked the barrier weakly, not expecting an answer. "Wake _up_."

It was driving him crazy. He was not built to function like this. From the very moment he'd awoken in the bio-tanks, Shokunabo and Darius had made sure he knew very quickly how _not_ important he was. He needed his Leader to tell him what to do.

"No, you don't."

Dark Mike blinked and stared at Dark Leo. His eyes were still closed. Dark Mike furrowed his brow in confusion.

"You don't need him to tell you what to do."

Dark Mike looked behind him and saw Raphael standing there. He hissed, and whirled completely around so he could face the other. Lowering himself into a crouch. He didn't care about the barrier around him – things came in the barrier all the time. For all he knew, the red one had programmed it to allow his arms and legs through to hurt him. "Stay away!"

"Shut up." Red's voice was cold, but calm. "If I wanted to hurt you, you'd be hurt right now."

Dark Mike resisted the urge to stick out his tongue.

"I heard you," Raph continued. "Your other two brothers are gone. Darius is gone. Shokunabo is gone. Nothing's left for you but your leader, and he's down for the count. You need to make decisions for yourself."

Apparently not all of what he'd been thinking had stayed in his head. Dark Mike smacked himself. _Stupid, stupid, stupid..._

"You gotta ask yourself what you want," Raph said in a low voice. "Frankly, I still think having you here is a mistake. I ain't as foolish as my bros to let my guard down around any of you. But you've been here a month, and I know you want to get out of that cage. Thing is, when you _do _get out, do you wanna stay here like Leo offered? Or do ya wanna make a break for it and go back to a life of crime, chaos, and living off scraps and dumpster trash?"

He wanted to stay."I want Leader to wake up," he repeated tiredly. "I will do what he wants me to do."

Raph shook his head, and a tiny scrap of pity could be seen on his face. Dark Mike was astonished. "You really _are_ pathetic," he said quietly, before turning to leave. "Think about what I said, Mike-zilla."

Dark Mike watched him leave, confusion swirling around his head and heart, making them both ache.

--

His leader was awake! Dark Mike was all but dancing inside his little cage barrier. The barrier had been fixed to the back of the room to keep him out of the way, but at least they'd let him stay in the room. They had no choice, really – he'd threatened to sing a song his 'original' song had taught him, the song that never ended, and his voice was much harder on the ears than the others and when he really shouted, his voice carried easily to over forty percent of the penthouse. Considering his close proximity to the room where they'd be working on Leader, it was best just to give in to him. Dark Mike was rather proud of how he'd been able to manipulate his jailers all by himself. Perhaps there was hope for him yet.

"Let me see him!" he snarled, striking the barrier.

The group made up of turtles, a rat, a human and one very annoying robot, parted like the Red Sea. Donatello made his to his containment area. "He's asleep," he began.

"But you said he woke up!" Dark Mike felt the first, small, flaming tendrils of hope that had begun to grow in his chest, wither and die into ashes. "You said so!"

"He did wake up," Donatello hastened to assure him. "But he was very weak and very tired. Healing takes a lot energy. He couldn't stay awake any longer. But he'll be able to next time."

"When will that be?" Dark Mike demanded. "When?"

"Whenever is body is ready." Donatello gave him a sad smile. Dark Mike might have been almost touched by that if he hadn't been so angry at being kept from his Leader when he'd been awake and aware.

"I want to see!" he hissed, and if he sounded desperate, he didn't care. It had been a month. A month! As far as he knew, the turtles were lying, and his leader had ever woken up at all.! And never would! "Now!"

Donatello had a strange look on his face for a minute, staring at Dark Mike searchingly. Before Dark Mike could compare his behaviour to the Crazy One, the turtle picked up the remote to Mike's cage and pressed the button, despite the protests from the others. The barrier lowered.

Dark Mike swiped his claws curiously at the space where the blue shield had been. Nothing. No crackle of energy, no hum of energy chambers. Nothing but a faint breeze he could feel coming from the window behind him. Well then. That certainly settled it. "You_ are_ crazy," he informed Donatello haughtily and stalked through the throng, ignoring the drawn weapons, and the way Cody had been dragged behind the big, ugly robot. Reaching his leader's bed, he stood over the still form with his arms folded, inspecting every inch of him. After a minute, he reached down and smacked his Leader fiercely across the face. Protests sounded behind him, but he tuned them out. "That's for falling asleep before talking to me," he snarled. Then he patted his Leader's arm, awkwardly, like Donatello had done for him, and turned his back on the bed, sliding down and bringing his legs up. He would watch. Watch and wait, and when Leader next woke, he would know what to do.

"Are you planing on staying there all night?" Donatello asked cautiously.

"Yes." Dark Mike scowled up at the purple one, daring him to try and move him.

Donatello nodded. "I'll bring your blanket in," was all he said. Dark Mike was surprised.

Raphael was a bit more vocal, demanding to know what Donnie was thinking, but Don, Leo and Mikey dragged him out of the room for a private conference, leaving the rat, the robot and the boy behind. Dark Mike scowled at them. "What?"

The rat was smiling at him. It made his skin start crawling again. The boy was checking the machines that beeped. After a few minutes, he addressed Dark Mike."Your Leader is healing far more quickly than we thought," Cody told him. "We've given him painkillers that will also help him sleep through the night. Based on his metabolism, he should be awake by tomorrow morning."

Dark Mike nodded, and continued to watch silently as the boy pushed buttons and checked outputs.

Donatello and Mikey came back in five minutes later. Donatello had the blanket that Dark Mike had been using."Since he's settled for the night, we'll leave you two alone. Try talking to him. Sometimes people who are unconscious can hear those trying to talk to them."

Dark Mike snatched the blanket away, wrapping it around his shoulders quickly. "Whatever."

Mikey waved a fistful of large, flat books at him. "More comics, big guy! I know you hate Justice Force, so I brought a few different ones so you can figure out which ones you do like!" He set them on the floor next to Dark Mike's tail.

Dark Mike felt that confusion coming back, and he growled, low, deep in the back of his throat. "Why? Why are you doing this?"

Donatello narrowed his eyes. "Did you think we were all like Darius Dun?"

"Yes!" snapped Dark Mike. "In that no one does something for nothing. Everyone wants something. What do you want from me? From him?" He flung a clawed hand back at his Leader. "What's the trick?"

"No trick," Donnie said quietly.

"Honestly," Mikey added. "We just wanna help you guys. We figure you can't be all bad., not after you tried to save each other."

Dark Mike was not convinced. He continued to eye the others warily.

"You obviously need a reason," Donnie said with a sigh. "So accept this then: we're doing it because we know Bishop from a long time ago, and the situation you were in with Darius could just have easily been us. We don't want to see anyone living like that."

"We wouldn't have done the same for you," Dark Mike said flatly. "We would have left you to rot."

"And therein lies the difference between you and us," Donatello said gently. "So accept this as a kind of...charity, if that makes you feel any better about why we're doing this."

"I'm assuming you'll want us to repay you by working for you?" Dark Mike was trying to figure out all of the angles, and the bit about 'not expecting anything' was playing havoc with his logic.

Mikey shook his head. "No way, dude. You'll be free. Kinda. I think. Um." He stopped, and looked at Donnie. "Help?"

Donatello looked amused. "But you're doing such an eloquent job as it is." Ignoring Mikey's sputtering, he looked back at Dark Mike. "Technically, and as distasteful as I find it, you're considered to be property of O'Neil Tech."

_Owned._ Dark Mike felt his heart sink into his taloned feet. _Nothing but property._

"But once you two are healed, we plan to have a group discussion on what to do – involving you too, of course." Donatello smiled. "I think you'll either have a choice of staying here until you figure out what you want to do out of life, working for O'Neil tech as guards - they could certainly use some extra muscle – or leaving to start new lives somewhere else entirely, if you want. You won't be owned anymore. You'll be free. Cody said he'd be willing to help get you started with that."

Dark Mike's head was spinning. Free? Freedom was a tiny bird that kept flitting like quicksilver out of their grasping hands. He could barely contemplate it. It was too big, too much. He turned his head away, and his tail snaked along the length of the bed, reaching up and wrapping around the wrist of the blue-skinned mutant behind him. "Leader..."

He could hear Donatello sigh, and his 'original' murmur something, but he didn't care anymore. He would wait. Wait and see what Leader wanted to do.

--

"I'm just sayin' it's creepy, is all," Raph said, shrugging. "It's like he can barely function aside from 'Leader this', and 'Leader that.' That kinda thing ain't healthy. It sounds like he's brainwashed or something."

"Well, maybe he is," Mikey pointed out. "I mean, I know if you and Donnie snapped one day and it was only me and Leo left, I'd be clinging to him so hard I'd be like an extra growth on his shell. Leo always has a plan. Me? Not so much."

"Don't give me that," Raph snorted. "You play the idiot, but I seen ya come up with some plans all your own and pull 'em off too. You did manage to graduate after all."

"Yeah, but I'm used to that. I mean, I haven't been so beaten down that I can't function without someone telling me what to do." Mikey gazed into the room where Dark Mike was huddled next to the bed, reading another one of his comic books. "I've been talking to him, Raph. He doesn't come right out and, like, _say_ things, but he gives me ideas. You know?" He shook his head sadly. "He's never been allowed to think for himself. Shokunabo, Darius, Dark Leo and the rest of his brothers – he's always been told exactly what to do, and severely punished if he wasn't."

"That ain't too different from us and how we were brought up," Raph scoffed. "We got in trouble for not listening to Master Splinter and Fearless."

"Yeah, but Donatello never strapped me to a lab table and peeled strips off my plastron as a punishment, right?" Mikey snapped. "And you've never starved me by beating the shell out of me and taking my share of the food."

Raph frowned.

"If it makes him feel better to wait for Leo's evil twin to wake up before he decides what to do, how does that hurt us?" Mikey gave Raph an even look. "Give him half a chance, bro. He's been out of that cage for a few days now, and he hasn't changed a thing in his routine. I really think this time will be different from the last."

Raph looked back in the room where Dark Mike was scowling at the comic book, calling the hero a moron for falling into such an obvious trap. "Maybe."

--

He's been in this type of situation before. It was well known. A soft bed. A soft pillow. The scent of pine and disinfectant. Dark Leo opened his eyes and took in a view that was very familiar. The room was exactly the same it had been the first time he'd been brought to the home of their 'originals'.

But there was one difference. He noticed it on his second scan – the tip of a long, prehensile tail resting by his hand on the bed. It hurt to move, but he did it anyway, shifting awkwardly until he could see the sleeping form of his younger brother, stretched out along the floor. He had a pillow under his head, and a blanket twisted around him.

He flicked the tail bit that was by his hand. "Hey," he rasped hoarsely.

His brother stirred on the floor, rolling over so he was facing the bed. His tail slipped off the covers to the ground. "F'rglrrrmmm..."

Dark Leo rolled his eyes. Of course. Looking around, he saw a data pad underneath a stack of comic books. Forcing himself a bit, he managed to bring his arm up enough to get it around the pile. Then. He gave it a weak shove. It didn't take much, and the books fell with a thump onto Dark Mike' head.

"Owww!"

"S'about time you woke up," he croaked, grinning at his gob-smacked sibling.

Dark Mike gave him an evil glare, and then smacked his arm. It was a relatively light smack, all things considered. "I could say the same thing about you."

Dark Leo motioned to the room. "Are we where I think we are?"

"If you mean Goody-Two-Shoes central, you got it," Dark Mike said, still staring at him. It was an odd look, one of reluctant concern, fear, a hint of anger, and a whole lot of oncoming panic.

It was making his head hurt just to look at him. "What's your problem?"

"Tell me what to do!" Dark Mike suddenly burst out. "I don't know what's right anymore! The Crazy One and Meanie are gone, gone like Darius, gone like Shokunabo, and you're the only one left! And I want to stay, I want to have pancakes again, but I don't know what to do 'cause no one will tell me!"

Dark Leo was nearly overwhelmed by the near-hysteria and force of his siblings words. "Shut up!" he roared, and Dark Mike instantly went silent, staring at him eagerly. "So we're at the penthouse again, huh?" Dark Mike nodded. "How long has it been?"

"Almost five weeks," Dark Mike said. His tail was still wriggling back and forth like a worm on a hook.

"What happened?"

The eager look left Dark Mike, to be replaced with more of the fear. "You don't remember?"

"Not all of it," he admitted roughly. "I remember those two idiots turning traitor on me, and I think they attacked you..."

"You saved me," Dark Mike said, looking away. "Don't know why, but you did."

"Huh." That was interesting. "You been in here this whole time?"

"Only since you kinda woke up before." His brother started pacing, obviously needed to expend some energy. "I mean, they let me eat meals with them, and then we exercise in the gym, and my 'original' teaches me to play video games and I saw the tree you talked about before--"

"Calm down," he growled. "For drek's sake, you sound like you're on a sugar buzz."

Dark Mike looked oddly guilty. "They said I was allowed," he whined, but reluctantly dropped a couple of candies that he'd been hiding in his belt onto the nightstand. Dark Leo looked at them, groaned and then chuckled, despite himself.

"Leader..."

"I'm not the leader," he cut off the other quickly. "We were never a team, you saw that. And if we were, well, it's fairly obvious we aren't now."

"But..." Dark Mike looked thunderstruck. "But...you... Leader."

"I'm _not _the Leader," he stressed. His head was hurting; he wanted to be done with this so he could go back to sleep. "Get that through your thick skull. I'm not the Leader. I don't think I ever was."

Dark Mike looked at him with eyes that seemed strangely hurt. "You were _my _leader," he said quietly, and then suddenly whirled around, speeding out of the room.

It was only after he left that Dark Leo clued into the fact that he was not confined inside the barrier surrounding his bed – that he had in fact, ran through it, as though he were one of the other turtles, allowed to roam free at will. He held his hand out and knocked on the blue barrier, feeling the mild sting of weak electrical current. Still trapped.

He watched the door where his sibling had run out for a long time.

--

"You are a grade A_ jerk_," Donatello ranted the next morning.

Dark Leo looked at him in astonishment. "What the heck did I do?" he growled. "I just woke up?"

"I'm talking about whatever you said to your brother." Don glared at him. "I don't want to yell at you, now that you're finally awake, but would it kill you to show an ounce of compassion? Dark Mike was sleeping on the floor of your room for the entire week before you completely came to again last night!"

"I didn't ask him to do that." Dark Leo looked away, frowning. "I never asked for any of this. Why didn't you all just let me die?"

"I could be a jerk and say it's because we don't want you getting off easy," Don snapped. Then his anger subsided a bit, and he blew his breath out in a sigh. "But really, it's more because we didn't want anyone, including you, trapped in a government-funded laboratory. What we saw on that tape made us realize that there was something worth saving in you."

"Me getting beaten to a pulp showed you that?"

Donatello smiled thinly. "Well, it was more the footage of you protecting your brother," he said calmly. "Which is why I can't for the life of me figure out what the heck is wrong with you."

The door slid open again, and Raphael came in. "Oh, wonderful," Dark Leo groaned sarcastically. "I was just wondering if my day could get off to an even worse start. Thank you fates, for showing me there's always a way."

"Oh, shut up." Raph shot him a glare. "I don't like you."

"So?"

"I said, _shut up_." Raphael's voice was cold. Chillingly cold. "I talk now. You don't."

Dark Leo was surprised enough by Raph's channeling of his own dark sibling that he did in fact, shut up.

"I don't like you," Raph repeated. "You took the chance Leo tried to give you and you threw it back in his face. As far as I'm concerned you could'a died in that little family spat you had and I wouldn't have given a damn." Donatello made a protesting sound, but quieted when Raph held up his hand to stay him. "Even when I saw the clip'a you saving Dark Mike. I figured, hell, it's a fluke. An automatically, programmed response." His lips thinned in a cruel smirk. "You'd know about being programmed, wouldn't you?"

Dark Leo bared his teeth, snarling.

Raph was completely unconcerned by his anger. "I been watching your brother this whole time, waiting for him to screw up. I figure, he's cloned from our Mikey. The odds of him screwing up are pretty much in our favor."

Despite his anger, Dark Leo couldn't stifle a partially amused snort.

"But you know? He's been fine. A few temper tantrums, but hell, I throw worse ones. The last week he's been out of the cage, he's been a model guest, more than you ever were. The only thing on his mind was you."

Dark Leo closed his eyes, a growl building in his throat.

"And I don't freaking get why?" Raph pointed his finger at the bedridden mutant. "You freaking saved his life, called him 'brother' in a way that showed you meant it, and then nearly died. He's been going outta his mind over you, and the first chance he gets to talk with you, you shut him out completely?" He shook his head slowly, disbelievingly. "You know, they call me the cold-blooded one. Man, I ain't got nothing on _you_."

"Are you finished?" Dark Leo asked, fists clenched. A hole was starting to tear in the sheets.

"We just want to know why," Donatello ventured, glancing uneasily from Dark Leo to Raph and back again. "Dark Mike needs you. He's worried about you, and won't let himself completely relax unless you give him a command."

"S'at still in effect?" Dark Leo looked interested. "I thought he'd be over it by now, if it's been as long as Mike said it's been."

"What are you talking about?"

Dark Leo made a vague hand gesture. "I dunno. Something about making him dependent. He was always a little wilder than the rest of us – more free, more prone to rebellion. After Darius took us back from Shokunabo, he began working on eliminating that urge to break free, and he did it by trying to program his mind--"he shot a dirty look at Raph, who had the decency to look away"--into needing permission or approval from any of us before he did something on his own. Darius was automatically included, but we were the ones who dealt with him the most."

"Why did you think it should have worn off by now?" Donatello looked both repulsed and a little fascinated.

"Because it never took hold permanently. He had to be 'wiped' at least once every two weeks or so. Five weeks, yeah, should be gone."

"Maybe it ain't the brainwashing that's making him care about what happens to you," Raph said coldly. "He said you were the one that started telling them what Leo'd been doing. He kept saying, 'you shared the meat'. He was amazed by that."

"Considering how starved he was, I ain't surprised." Dark Leo glared at them both. "_Now_ are you done?"

"Not until you tell us why you pushed your brother away," Donnie said, with surprising firmness. "There's got to be a reason. One that makes sense."

He was being backed into a corner. He didn't like it. "He needs to stand on his own two feet," said Dark Leo, finding it hard to meet their expressions. "If I'd died, what would have happened to him? He'd make the choice himself. It's no different now."

"But it is," Donnie insisted. "You're alive, and he cares about you. He wants to know what you'll do first, so he can make a decision that won't push you away!" Donatello risked reaching out and tentatively placing his hand on Dark Leo's huge arm. "He sees you as his Leader, but also as his brother. Don't you feel the same?"

The whole situation was making him uncomfortable. "No. Look, I don't take care of myself so good, let alone anyone else," Dark Leo said gruffly, trying to end the conversation. "I can't take care of him. Both of us were nearly killed."

Raph wasn't buying it. "Let's see... making sure he got food, protecting him from the others...gee, sounds like you were on the right track."

"Providing food and protection are two basic requirements for 'good big brother' candidacy," Donatello added with a grin.

Dark Leo fought the urge to snarl like a rabid dog. "Did you forget the part where I just said I nearly got him killed?"

"'Nearly' being the key words," Donatello said cheerfully.

"So, you're telling me this whole macho act is because you're afraid?" Raph snorted derisively. "Big, bad, dark boy is scared of having a family?"

"Shut up!" Dark Leo reached in vain for a weapon. All he had was a pillow. It would suffice. He slammed it into Raphael's head, knocking the mutant head over heels. The motion made Donatello instantly hit the button that turned on the barrier, but Dark Leo didn't care – he was laughing too hard. Raph was spitting out pillow feathers and cursing a blue streak, but Dark Leo could only laugh and laugh and keep on laughing, even after his guests left, throwing him strange looks as they did so.

His hysteria died down, and he wondered about those looks until he saw his reflection in the shiny polished metal of the hospital bed's guard rails, and saw a single tear track drying on his face.

--

"So they said I should give you another chance."

Dark Leo looked up to see Dark Mike in the doorway. It was strange seeing Dark Mike unencumbered by the blue energy field that constantly surrounded him now that he was conscious, but it was also fitting in a way. The one who had been able to crave and seek freedom the most, had been the first to earn it. "They?"

"Purple and Red," Dark Mike said shortly. He stalked into the room, folding his arms and glaring down at the bed bound mutant. "So, _Leader_--" he stressed the word, making it sound like a curse. "--wanna yell at me some more? Tell me to drop dead? Wait, that can't be right. If you wanted me dead, you would have just let the Crazy One do what he wanted to. Right?"

Dark Leo scowled. "What do you want me to say?"

Dark Mike shrugged, snapping his tail from side to side. "I dunno. I mean, our 'originals' apologize when they hurt each other, but I don't think either of us know how to do that."

"I hurt you?" Dark Leo was surprised. "I didn't touch you. I tried to stop them."

"I know that!" snapped Dark Mike.

Dark Leo stared, confused, until he met the other's eyes, and it was all laid bare. He'd hurt the other's feelings, by pushing him away. He groaned silently. He didn't want to deal with this. "Would you even take an apology seriously?"

"Before? No." Dark Mike glared heatedly at the floor. "But it's been a very long five weeks. Things change."

That was for sure. "And if I were to... apologize.." he said stiffly. "...what would that mean?"

"Well, I'd probably accept it," Dark Mike said casually. His eyes flicked up and then back to the floor. "And then I'd ask you what our next move was."

"Our next move?"

Dark Mike suddenly shrunk a bit into himself. "'Leader always has a plan'," he parroted quietly.

Dark Leo recognized his words from the brainwashing. His fists clenched on the already-abused bedsheets tearing more holes in them. "That's over," he said harshly, willing himself to remain calm. "It's been over seven weeks since your last session with Darius. That can't still be in effect."

"What if I want it to be?" Dark Mike blurted out. He stubbornly refused to raise his eyes.

His eyes widened at the admission. Dark Leo stared at him, at a loss. "Why?" he couldn't figure it out. He wasn't fit to lead anyone. He'd been one of Dark Mike's tormentors in the past. How could he allow one moment of stupid, suicidal behaviour change so much?

"I don't want to be alone," said Dark Mike, still staring at the floor. "You said we could be a team. You said we should share. You said I was your brother." A strange sound escaped him. Dark Leo didn't know what it was until Dark Mike raised his head, and he could see a thin film of tears starting to well up. "Why did you say those things if you didn't mean them?"

"I... I..." Dark Leo was stupefied. "I...thought I was going to die. I thought it wouldn't matter."

Dark Mike scoffed. "I'd buy that for the 'brother' comment. But the others were way before then. It's what got you beaten in the first place."

It was a stalemate, and both of them knew it. Dark Mike suddenly muttered,_ 'Screw it',_ and faced him staunchly. It unnerved him a little, but his sibling was speaking before he could begin a protest."Look," he began. "I've been alone with our 'originals' for a long time. I like what I see. I like this place. I like not having to fight for scraps. I like having hot water for showers, and I like having a blue blanket on a real bed." He glared at his Leader. "I want to stay." His eyes dropped again, and so did his voice, as he forced out the last of his words. "I want my brother to stay too."

Dark Leo was relieved he didn't have to say anything else, except for a firm, "Me too."

--

"So, you've decided to stay at the O'Neil Tech building?"

Dark Leo nodded. The story of the four turtles traveling to the future had given them all additional ideas. "You don't really want us here all the time, and we can do guard work to pay back the brat—err, Cody, for his help. When you guys go back to your own time, we can come here and make sure he doesn't get himself offed."

Cody was smiling. "You don't need to," he assured the older brother, who just ignored him. Undeterred, Cody pulled out a file folder. "I told you, I was happy to do it. And these papers--" he handed a sheaf of them to Dark Leo. "--are your full identities for here in New York. You are no longer registered property of O'Neil Tech."

Dark Mike clawed at the papers. "I wanna see! I wanna see!" Dark Leo gave him a swat on the back of the head. The smaller mutant dropped with a pout and a drawn-out 'Awww...'

Dark Leo looked at Raphael. "Thanks for that tip," he said, flexing his fingers. "It really works."

Raph snorted again. Leonardo shook his head, amused.

Donatello and Serling were busy loading the last of the provisions into the back of the O'Neil hoverjet that Starlie had sent over for their pickup. "There's enough stuff to last you for a few weeks, at least until O'Neil technicians finish renovating that lower level into a proper lair for you."

"And the credit sticks I gave you are for whatever you want or need," Cody said. "If you want to buy a mansion or anything huge, I need to sign off on it, but other then that, have fun with them."

Dark Mikey was waving his credit stick. "Can we stop at off downtown on the way home?" he asked. He waved at Mikey happily. "I wanna see if there's more Silver Sentry comics still around!"

"Dude, we've got to compare notes," promised Mikey. "I wanna know which parts you liked best."

"Next time," Dark Leo growled. "I want to get going."

Everyone gathered around and waved goodbye. Dark Leo gave them a weak attempt at a smile but his brows were still furrowed downwards, and he just looked scary. Dark Mike said he'd work on that with him and waved goodbye so forcefully he nearly fell off the loading platform. Dark Leo had to haul him in by his shell. Finally though, the ship took off, neatly maneuvering across the cities numerous skyways to the tall tower of O'Neil tech.

Dark Mike was bouncing in his seat, asking if they were there yet. Dark Leo watched him out of the corner of his eye, feeling a small ball of warmth unfold and spread out inside his stomach. Family. He had real family now.

"Soon," he said gruffly. "We'll be home soon."

--

**End!**

**End Notes:** Well, that's over and done with. :D I may do another Dark Turtle fic in the future, but I can honestly say this one is finished! Sorry, that's a rare thing for my multi-chaptered fics. :D

I liked Dark Leo and Dark Mike in the FF series. Dark Don freaked me out – reminded me a LOT of Baxter Stockman and Bishop combined in a mutated body. Dark Raph is said to be cannibalistic on the box his toy comes in, so having him turn on the others wasn't a big stretch for me. The biggest problem was trying to keep everyone in character and working towards a resolution (I like happy endings) but without sappy mushy stuff that would make them OOC. I hope this worked for everyone.

Thanks for reading!


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